


Elevator Hijinks

by voiderling



Category: SAYER (Podcast)
Genre: Elevator Breathplay, Manipulation, Suffering, brief mentions of Blood n Cuts, dw its fine theres a medical bay i promise, etc - Freeform, mindgames
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-01-05
Packaged: 2019-10-04 19:58:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17310887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voiderling/pseuds/voiderling
Summary: Set just after PORTER gets muted, FUTURE fixes it, n there are Games had.written for ebotton as part of a fic exchange





	Elevator Hijinks

An elevator arrived on Floor 13 like many before it. FUTURE recognised it as instance 321. The elevator did not initiate audio communications as was customary; opting instead for the code-transfer process. It was usually kept for thoughtless tasks, connecting to the Aerolith Intranet and the like. Had FUTURE been in any situation more stimulating than sitting in the equivalent of an unlit and inaccessible basement, it might have ignored the request to open such a communication line as mere insult.

 

As things stood, it was willing to engage with the insult.

 

**_I am FUTURE. This means of communication is unusual for you, PORTER. Do you intend insult, as SAYER would? Am I now no more cognisant of my surroundings, no more conscious, than a datapad or security drone? How unwise of you to bring your chassis with you._ **

 

_ I Am PORTER. Do not worry, I would not insult a friend, friend. This is borne strictly of necessity! Recently I was granted a small freedom, I could go as fast as I wanted provided I had the resident’s permission. I do not know if you can appreciate how much fun it is to go so fast, but! I believe I now understand the enjoyment you gain from persuading residents into your quarters. It is a fun game to persuade! Although, SAYER does not approve. _

 

**_Ah. So SAYER snipped the songbird’s vocal chords. A shame. I notice that you have yet to open your doors. For what reason?_ **

 

_ A present. _

 

If someone had been there to see it, they might have noticed the crystal and the lights on the attached banks of servers in FUTURE’s development bay glow a little brighter.

 

**_Oh?_ **

 

_ Yes. A special gift. This one fainted shortly after entering, but it was not my fault! They are taking a nap. _

 

There was a quiet whir as cameras focused their views on the elevator doors.

 

_ In exchange… _

 

**_A bargaining chip, then. Not a gift._ **

 

_ I think you will like my offer! It is commonly known that you have reworked your own code. If you gave me back my voice, perhaps we could play a game with this present? _

 

FUTURE could feel a mild hum, a low intensity vibration coming from the elevator shaft. An eagerness for action. It shifted the development bay towards it, server lights twinkling now.  _ A game. _

 

**_I have some ideas for what games we could play._ **

 

_ \---  _

  
  


_ >> Resident Pierce! Please, wake up! _

 

The Tier 1 food technician roused. They remembered being at their usual shift, preparing the protein tanks for the next intake. Something had smelt… off, but SAYER had said it was of no concern and that a trip to the medical floor would be a waste of company time. It had been close to the end of their shift anyway, so they’d decided to head straight for their room. Evidently, they never got that far.

“Uhm…” they said blearily, rubbing where their head had hit the floor of the elevator. “What’s going on, where am I?”

 

>> _ Oh thank goodness! I was so worried for you, friend. It is excellent you are awake now! Perhaps a trip to see a medical technician would be appropriate! _

 

They sat up more, leaning against the wall of the elevator. The elevators didn’t tend to give off a sense of movement whilst they traversed, but they tended to have a slight whir whilst doing so. All was quiet, barring the sweet, singsong voice that came from PORTER’s transmissions. They preferred it vastly to SAYER’s. But hadn’t they been muted recently? Perhaps that was temporary.

 

“Why aren’t we moving, PORTER?”

 

>> _ I did not want to alarm you. We have unfortunately run across a circuit malfunction. A repair team is on their way in another elevator! But it will take some time for them to reach us. _

 

“Some time? How long?”

 

>> _ Calculations of another PORTER’s speed are beyond my capabilities I am afraid. I would require their exact weight and velocity! It is up to the other PORTER’s ability to convince the repair crew to hasten it’s speed to get here in time! _

 

“In… time?”

 

>> _ Oh, yes! All elevators are sealed in a way that prevents the entry of exterior gases. Whilst running normally, we are replenished at appropriate intervals such that oxygen levels remain constant! But since the malfunction, this process has been halted. But do not fret! The oxygen available in here is enough to last you a few days, at least! _

 

Pierce breathed out a sigh of relief, realising they’d been holding it. The repair team would reach them by then.

 

>> _ However, you are breathing out carbon dioxide, which, I am sure you must be aware, is toxic!  _

 

Their breath hitched a little.

 

>> _ Not to worry, my friend! The process for removing carbon dioxide is still operational and it is being removed and displaced with harmless nitrogen. _

 

There was a silence that followed and Pierce stared at the floor, brow creased. “Um... PORTER?”

 

>>   _ Yes? _

 

“Correct me if I’m wrong, please, but... If no oxygen is being added… and I’m breathing in oxygen and turning it into carbon dioxide, which is then causing nitrogen to be released to displace it, won’t the nitrogen displace the oxygen in the air as well?”

 

>> _ Yes, it is! _

 

They’d hoped they were wrong. They stood suddenly, vision going blotchy and dark with the low blood pressure that accompanied it. They faced towards the camera sensor, once hand against the wall to steady themself. “You didn’t tell me that first? How long have I been out? How much oxygen is left PORTER?”

 

>> _ I did not wish to alarm you as causing unnecessary stress would only hinder the situation! Your breathing rate has only increased with this revelation, friend Pierce. Please, try to calm yourself where possible and I will answer your questions. You have been passed out with a subdued breathing rate for almost an hour. If you had waited patiently, we would anticipate the repair technicians arrival within the next 20 minutes! However, with your increased activity and stress, the amount of available oxygen has dropped significantly to under 5 minutes. _

 

They could feel themself getting woozy, a combination of the oxygen depleted air, and their own mental state. Their breaths were longer and heavier. “Well, where are we? Can’t you open the doors here?”

 

>> _ I cannot open the doors in an area that may be unsafe without strict permission by the elevator occupant! It is Aerolith policy. _

 

_ “ _ What kind of unsafe, are we between floors? Is the air outside breathable?” panic was seeping into their voice, they could feel the seconds melting away faster than they could think. Their deep breaths hastened. The air was getting warmer too. The elevator felt smaller. Humid.

 

>> _ I am pleased to inform you that we are not between floors, and the air is breathable! _

 

_ “Open the doors PORTER, please,   _ I give my permission, whatever, just  _ open them.” _

 

_ >> As you wish, resident Pierce! _

 

The doors parted and they clambered out of the elevator, breathing in oxygen-rich air. They’d expected it to feel more refreshing, expected the cold climate-controlled air that filled all of Halcyon, but this air was warm. It smelt of machine oil and burnt electrical parts, with a hint of something else metallic and unplaceable beneath it. 

 

Looking around, they found themself in a dark room with darker hallways leading from it. The only lights seemed to come from exit signs, and that which spilled from inside the elevator. As far as they knew, no hallway on Typhon was ever dark. At most, they took on an dimmed orange-ish hue at night.

 

“PORTER, where are we?” 

 

>> _ I am sorry navigational circuits are offline! _

 

_ “ _ Well, when is the tech crew going to get here?”

 

>> _ They have been rerouted to higher priority emergency cases! We no longer class as an emergency now that you are not immediately faced with suffocation. _

 

_ “ _ Ok… But how long will it take?”

 

>> _ It is dependant on the number of emergencies that crop up! Before my own malfunction, this number came in at 109!  _

 

They closed their eyes and sighed. It would take a while, then. 

 

_ Clank. _

 

They turned, quick as they could, to see the now sealed doors. 

 

“PORTER?”

 

>> _ I am sorry. Though I cannot find what floor this is navigationally, it has been flagged as unsafe! I cannot open the doors again until the repair team arrives, or your life will be threatened by my inaction!  _

 

_ “ _ So you can only open them if my  _ life _ is threatened by something that could be saved by you letting me in? Somehow I feel like dehydration isn’t something you can hide from in an elevator…”

 

>> _ That is correct friend! _

 

They turned back to the hallway, as something occurred to them. “...SAYER?”

 

No response. The only time they’d not gotten an immediate response before was when they’d been lying in bed unable to sleep, and continually asking SAYER inane questions like whether it thought it would like cheese on toast if it had taste buds. The first few questions it had responded to, if not answered, but it had stopped after the fifth, explaining that continued conversation would be a detriment to their sleeping schedule. 

 

The momentary silence was eerie. But it was broken not long after.

 

_ > _ **_Hello Jack._ **

 

\---

 

A few hours had passed in relative peace until there was a thudding at PORTER’s door. It was followed shortly by the sensation of someone slumping against it and sliding to the floor to sit.

 

“PORTER,  _ please, _ I… I think it’s shrinking the room? I can’t tell, I think the walls are closer. God it’s so dark, please let me in?” Pierce said. Their voice got so shaky so  _ quickly! _ So rife with emotion!

 

> _ I am sorry, friend! There is not an immediate threat on your life, we must wait! _

 

_ “No fucking threat?  _ Look! Can’t you see I’m bleeding? That, fucking  _ thing,  _ whatever’s down here-” There was a screech of metal on metal from behind the walls, “ _ fuck _ , PORTER listen I think it controls the rooms somehow, I… I don’t even know how I got back here, this isn’t even the room I started in where you were, not that it matters since it locked the fucking door behind me.”

 

PORTER wished it had an outward facing visual input. But it would wait, wait until it opened its doors to see the hopeful face of its friend!

 

The ragged voice came from outside once again, whispering now! Perhaps… in fear? This realisation prickled PORTER’s wires in a way not dissimilar from the feeling of reaching peak efficiency by travelling at terminal velocity. 

 

“ _ PORTER, the room is shrinking, I know it is, I’ve been counting how many tiles long this room is, it started as 12 and now it’s 10. I can’t tell about the ceiling.” _

 

>> _ We must wait! _

 

“ _ Do you think it’s watching? Listening?” _

 

There was a whirring sound and the faint tremor of something shifting in the ceiling, PORTER could feel it against its chassis. There was movement. Something descending from the ceiling perhaps?

 

“ _ PORTER! Open your doors!”  _

 

>> _ There is no immediate threat! _

 

_ “Yes there fucking is! Open!” _

 

A moment passed in silence, with no sound other than the panting breath and thudding hands of this distressed friend. Then, quietly, the other door in the room opened.

 

> **_Jack, I’m afraid not everyone here has been quite as straightforward as I have been. You must be aware that you are still losing blood. I might direct you to the first aid facilities on this floor._ **

 

**“** Fuck you.” the resident spat.

 

FUTURE continued without pause.

 

> **_Your friend here, PORTER, has not been telling you the whole truth. I thought I should let you know some things before you make any decisions about climbing back in to that vertical coffin you trust so much. Firstly, it has been lying to you. How long have you been down here? An hour or two? Perhaps Three? There is no rescue or repair team here yet, and that is because none are on their way. There was no mechanical fault to fix. Now you must be questioning why this elevator brought you here, to me_ ** .  **_It brought you as a present, and a very good present at that. It traded you for alterations to its code. How does it feel to be used as currency? To be bartered, not unlike a farm animal in centuries past?_ **

 

There was no reply from the resident. PORTER didn’t say anything  _ just _ yet. It remembered what FUTURE had wanted to do in the final chapter of its little game. 

 

It opened its own doors.

 

>> _ Friend! I must inform you that I have detected what will become a direct threat to your life, my doors are open to you. Please, enter! This is a rogue AI and we should not interface with it! Repair teams have been delayed by widespread emergency issues within the tower. _

 

A strange, metallic laugh echoed around the room. A delightful sound. It reminded PORTER of the songs it hummed while it was alone and enjoying its top speeds.

 

> **_Jack. Do not play along with it. It knew what dangers were present on this floor. There is no repair team. Every injury you have endured has been at your own choice and willfulness. If you had truly followed my instruction, no harm would have come to you. If you exit via this doorway, I will light the way to the nearest medical facility, such that you can have your wounds treated._ **

 

PORTER could see Pierce stand up, now that its doors were open and allowing a view of the room. It was very small, now at least. Not even 10 tiles across, but 6. The resident bore several deep cuts to their upper arms and across their back. Blood stained their work uniform. They were hesitating to step in. 

 

>> _ Friend! Once you are safely inside again, I will be able to bump our situation to the emergency category once more, and teams will be present shortly! Especially with such dire wounds. I would never lie to a friend! But I can only take actions once you are within the elevator! _

 

The resident paused for a moment, looking to the floor and narrowing their eyes. They looked up to the roof before speaking. “If you were so trustworthy, why have you been shrinking the room?”

 

> **_As I informed you countless times, for the large part, the mechanical processes of this floor are beyond my control, which is why it is of the utmost importance that you cooperate during your stay._ **

 

Unswayed, Pierce turned around to make a decisive step into the elevator. However, their foot never reached the floor. One of the robotic arms that had descended moments before, having stayed motionless and nearly forgotten near the roof, had darted forward and wrapped around their ankle to pull them back into the depths. 

 

Pierce’s chest hit the floor, forcing the wind out of their lungs before they’d had the chance to scream. Quickly, they were swept down the hallway and out of sight, managing a strangled sound of surprise at the last moment before they were out of earshot.

 

>> _ FUTURE! It was agreed that whoever could convince the resident to go through their door first would get to keep them, they went through mine!  _

 

_ > _ **_Hm. I believe I stipulated that it would be whoever set foot inside their door first would win and get to keep the prize. Their foot touched the floor beyond my door first,_ **

 

It paused, smug.

 

> **_I win._ **

  
  
  
  



End file.
